That's the title of an article in yesterday's New York Times (they require a log-in to read older articles). It describes how unprofessional some medical students have been dressing in recent years. Short skirts, flip flops, jeans, and the like. In California, people tend to dress pretty casual and I have noticed on occasion that some students dress inappropriately, even for my casual taste. If my internist showed up in a miniskirt and flip flops, I'm not sure how I'd feel. Perhaps it would be more distressing if it was my first encounter with a particular physician. If it was someone I had been seeing for a while, i don't think I'd mind, though I would probably notice a less-than-professional attire. When I was on my surgery rotation, the clerkship director told us that we should watch how we dress for clinic, because studies have shown that your attire could affect your ability to gain the trust of your patient (a study was done in the American Journal of Medicine last year). She urged us to look at ourselves in the mirror each morning and ask "Do I look like a doctor?" and then ask "Would my grandmother think that I look like doctor?" I guess it depends on your patients, but ultimately, it's probably better to be safe and dress in a professional manner as much as you can.

Tags: school